Chapter 20 Confronting the Arch-River Company
Winnie was stunned by his unusual reaction. This was a song she composed a long time ago.
The man narrowed his eyes, recalling the girl who had saved him. At that time, she had hummed a soothing lullaby while gently massaging him to appease his seizures and it was similar to this song.
He suddenly asked, "Are you a doctor?"
Winnie frowned. She had promised her mother to keep her medical skills a secret for her own safety hence, she only shared it with Olivia, and no one else.
His question caught her off guard. The meaning behind his words swirled in her mind like an unanswered riddle.
"I’m not," she instinctively denied.
The well of emotions in the man's eyes faded as he ended the topic. "Go to sleep! Leave the rest to me."
Winnie had a few question marks in her mind, but she didn't dwell on them and simply nodded.
-
In the study, the man took off his mask which unveiled a face of incomparably handsome features exuding a murderous intent. He called Benjamin, his voice cold.
"I'll give you a chance to redeem yourself. Capture Winnie's father and stepmother and beat them to death. They dare to harm my child, but they don't know who I am."
"What? Mr. L, what have I done wrong?" Benjamin looked confused.
"She was going to meet Matthew tonight, and you misled me, making me misunderstand her. Get to work!" The man angrily hung up the phone.
At the same time, in the bedroom, Winnie lay on her side, unable to fall asleep due to the bruises on her back when Olivia video-called her.
Anxiously, she asked, "Winnie, I heard that you were beaten by some men at the Twilight Bar tonight. What happened? Are you hurt?"
Recalling the danger earlier tonight, Winnie felt a lingering fear. Her hand seeking solace, pressed against the churning turmoil in her stomach as she recounted the incident.
Olivia was furious. "Matthew still dared to-"
The accusation hung in the air, heavy and unspoken before she turned back to Winnie with eyes blazing in anger.
"Personally, he is not worthy of being a father. It was Ava who falsely accused you of her fake pregnancy, and you were only defending yourself. Yet, he went as far as to physically assault you, causing a miscarriage, all for Ava's satisfaction!"
Winnie trembled with fear and narrowed her eyes, saying, "It was Sophia who instigated him and Ava deliberately sought revenge against me. She leaked the video, hoping to cover up her embarrassment with the scandal of my miscarriage. Furthermore, they prevented me from participating in the competition."
"It's outrageous, just look at me!" Olivia roared in anger.
-
Late at night, Matthew and Sophia were on their way home from a social gathering when suddenly their car was surrounded by several motorcycles.
A mob of youths descended from their car and then proceeded to drag Matthew and Sophia out after which they brutally attacked them right in the alley.
The suddenness of the attack left Matthew reeling. Outnumbered, Matthew and Sophia took the pounding as they were unable to fight back. Left with bruises and a swollen face, Matthew angrily shouted, "Who the hell are you brats?! Dare to attack me, do you think you can mess with my life?!" His voice echoed in defiance.
"Ha! Brothers, give them more punches and kicks, and make this old bastard regret it!"
Matthew and Sophia huddled together while enduring the beating. After having their fill of violence, their attackers cursed and left.
"Who were those people?” Sophia stammered, her voice barely a whisper. "A bunch of thugs? We haven't bothered anyone recently."
Matthew's mind suddenly cleared and then he realized, "It's Winnie ... Didn't she join the gang? Tonight, I tricked her into getting an abortion, so she must have brought these thugs to seek revenge on us! That ungrateful woman. It's all because of your terrible idea to force me into aborting her child just to please Ava!"
Sophia spoke coldly, "I did it all for Ava's happiness with Daniel. It is only by eliminating Winnie that we can exert full control over the company..."
She continued babbling. Matthew's phone kept ringing as he called for an ambulance.
At that moment a news headline on the screen caught his eye, draining the blood from his face and leaving it flushed as red as a beet.
"Breaking news. Wife of the Anderson Group CEO, a former porn actress!"
"Socialite Sophia has been involved with numerous wealthy men through sponsorships."
"Mr. Matthew takes over the hero's role."
The phone screen emitted a brilliant glow in the encompassing darkness, catching Sophia's attention, and causing her face to pale. In a fit of anger, Matthew's complexion turned a deep shade of purple as his eyes landed on a mocking text message from a department store manager.
"Mr. Matthew, your wife has gone viral! Was she a former porn star? No wonder you can't keep your hands off of her."
The mocking words infuriated Matthew, who was extremely concerned about his reputation.
Seeing him gasping for breath, Sophia nervously said, "I'm innocent..."
"You're a despicable woman." Matthew lost all sense of rationale, turned his head and slapped her. "Have you done so many vile things in the past? Now that they've been exposed, you're ruining everything!
"I have suffered from a loss of reputation because of you!" Matthew was furious.
"I did nothing wrong. I was clean before I married you. It must be Winnie ... what a coincidence, she attacks my child and then I am retaliated against. It must be her!"
"You have a dark history. How could someone say that I am the one taking over? Get lost!"
Matthew was furious and immediately called the public relations team at the Anderson Group to get them to remove the trending search.
However, despite Matthew's best efforts, Sophia's trending search was still hanging high the next day, as if there was a hacker secretly sabotaging it.
The next day Winnie woke up and saw the news. The first person she thought of was Olivia.
She called her. Olivia, half asleep, didn't deny it. She said, "It's me. I dug up countless dark histories on Sophia overnight and gave her a five-day trending search package. But have you heard the rumors? I heard that Sophia and Matthew were beaten up by a group of gangsters and sent to the hospital. I wonder which kind-hearted person avenged you? How satisfying!"
Winnie was stunned. She couldn’t believe that Matthew and Sophia were beaten up by gangsters. She didn't know why, but she inexplicably thought of what Mr. L said before leaving last night.
"Leave other matters for me to handle."
She seemed to have found the answer in her heart. Her lips curled slightly. Although he misunderstood her the night before, but when the truth came out, he took her grievances to heart.
With his means, it would be easy for him to wipe out the Anderson family. Winnie admired his courage in taking revenge for her without interfering in her personal affairs.
For the next few days, she stayed obediently at home, nursing her injuries and striving to perform well.
With Sophia trending and her reputation damaged, she would not go easy on Matthew and the Anderson family anymore after fully understanding who he was.
In the big competition next month, she must win and take back the Triton Company.
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